President Biden on Monday moved negotiators closer to an agreement to halt Israeli military operations in Gaza within a week in exchange for the release of at least some of the more than 100 hostages held by Hamas. He expressed the view that there is.
Speaking to reporters while in New York, Biden offered the most hopeful assessment of the hostage talks by key figures in recent days, suggesting the war may be nearing a major turning point.
“I hope by the end of the week,” he told reporters when asked when the ceasefire would begin. “My national security adviser says we are getting close. It's not over yet. My hope is that by next Monday there will be a ceasefire.”
The president made the comment spontaneously in response to a question during a visit to an ice cream parlor after a taping of Seth Meyers' late-night talk show. The move comes amid heightened talks in the region, after Israel's war cabinet approved the general terms of the deal over the weekend, including a six-week cease-fire for the release of about 40 hostages. The Israeli delegation is scheduled to meet in Qatar with mediators from the United States, Egypt and Qatar.
A long-term ceasefire, agreed to coincide with the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan next week, would halt Israeli shelling in the Gaza Strip, which has killed thousands of Palestinians and sparked a humanitarian crisis. . It could also trigger a surge in humanitarian aid to Gaza, where food, water, electricity and other essentials are in short supply.
The negotiated agreement marks a dramatic and perhaps decisive moment in the nearly five-month-old Middle East conflict, in which the remaining six American hostages were among more than 200 captured during a Hamas raid and taken to Gaza. It can lead to liberation. Attacked Israel on October 7th. Approximately 1,200 people were killed in Israel.
It could also ultimately mean the release of dozens of other hostages still held captive. Their families are waging a pressure campaign in Israel and around the world demanding their release, as Israel responds to Hamas attacks with heavy ground and air attacks.
Biden on Monday did not elaborate on the details of the ceasefire or whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had signed the agreement. But the president's assessment that a deal could be reached by the end of next week was the clearest sign of progress in recent weeks.
In a separate interview on NBC's “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” which was taped Monday afternoon and aired early Tuesday morning, the president said the cessation of hostilities would lead to a broader shift in the region he has been working on. He said this could open the door to restructuring. Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia recognize Israel. But he backed off somewhat, saying he had been pressuring Israel to accept a so-called two-state solution in which the Palestinians would get their own state, but said that was a longer-term goal.
“A temporary ceasefire would allow us to change the dynamics and move towards establishing a process that would lead to a two-state solution, rather than an immediate two-state solution.Israel's security and “We need a process that guarantees independence for the Palestinian people,” he told Meyers.
While he once again supported Israel's right to defend itself after the October 7 attacks and continues to refer to itself as a Zionist, he said that as Israel focuses its operations particularly in southern Gaza, argued that the approach needed to be readjusted to minimize the casualties. The city of Rafah.
“Too many innocent people are being killed,” he said. “And Israel has delayed the offensive in Rafah. I did.”
He added that if Israel does not change course, it could jeopardize the remaining friendships in the international community. “They will lose support around the world,” he said. “And that is not in Israel's interest.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israeli forces would invade Rafah regardless of the ceasefire or hostage agreement. “It has to be done,” he said. “Because complete victory is our goal and complete victory is within our reach.” However, he acknowledged that such operations would be “somewhat delayed” if a ceasefire was agreed.
For Biden, who seeks a second term in the White House, helping to orchestrate a durable agreement to cease fighting could be a key step toward addressing difficult political vulnerabilities.
Palestinian activists in the United States have been attacking Biden for months for failing to do more to prevent civilian deaths in Gaza. Protesters have stalked the president at most of his public events in recent weeks, sometimes waving signs calling him “Massacre Joe.”
That anger is likely to be on display Tuesday, when Michigan's Democratic voters head to the polls to choose their party's presidential nominee. Some activists in Michigan, a state with a large Palestinian-American population, called on voters to protest Biden's stance on Gaza by voting “non-committal” in the primary.
The timing of Biden's responses to surprise questions from reporters could undermine that effort and help the president project strength in the primaries.
Efforts to ensure an end to the war have been underway since the beginning of the war, but the president and his aides have repeatedly defended Israel's responsibility in responding to the deadliest terrorist attack in history.
At the same time, pressure is mounting on the Israeli government to curb the rising death toll in the Gaza Strip, which Gaza health authorities say now exceeds 29,000, the majority of them civilians. . In November, the United States helped broker a cessation of fighting, leading to the release of about 100 hostages. Even after the moratorium collapsed due to disagreements with Hamas, Israeli military attacks continued.
In recent weeks, negotiators have expressed optimism that negotiations between the parties are moving in the right direction. But the talks came against a backdrop of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's threats that his army was ready for a major attack on Rafah in southern Gaza.
More than 1 million civilians, many of them fleeing Israeli bombing in northern Gaza, have gathered in Rafah, and humanitarian organizations say a major Israeli attack there could add thousands more. They warn that people may die.
Mr. Biden spoke with Mr. Netanyahu on February 15, and White House officials said in a summary of the call that the two men “discussed ongoing hostage negotiations,” and that the president “expressed support for Mr. Netanyahu's release.” We reaffirmed our determination to work tirelessly to achieve this goal.” All the hostages. ”